The donation includes specialty tools and will provide students with valuable hands-on experience for expanding their knowledge of engine repairs, emissions and fuel economy. In addition to the equipment, Wärtsilä will also offer engine training to the Texas A&M Galveston engineering professors through the Wärtsilä Land and Sea Academy based in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

“Wärtsilä is a future oriented company. We not only develop technologies that move the industry forward, but are pleased to enhance the training of maritime specialists, naval architects, and marine engineers. We are proud to invest in the future of the US Maritime Industry by donating this engine to Texas A&M Galveston, ” says Aaron Bresnahan, Managing Director, Wärtsilä North America, Inc.

“This is a valuable learning and research tool for our students. They learn the basics of the engine and how to do various repairs that they might need one day at sea. It’s not a mock-up – it’s a real 1.6 megawatt engine as can be found in tugs and ferry boats. It’s just the kind of equipment our students will be working on once they graduate. It is an ideal tool for student education and for ongoing university research on marine power systems, ” says Ed Clancy, Professor of Marine Engineering and head of the Marine Engineering Technology Department at Texas A&M Galveston.

The Texas A&M Maritime Academy is one of six state maritime academies in the United States. At the conclusion of their training program, cadets are examined to become licensed in the Merchant Marine as deck or engineering officers. Plans are underway by the university to power the donated engine so that students can have the full experience of operating and maintaining a modern engine. Once the genset is operational, Wärtsilä and Texas A&M Galveston will host a campus celebration and unveiling.

The company’s support to maritime sector students is also shown in its donations to other technical learning institutions. In 2011, Wärtsilä donated a diesel engine, reduction gear, PTO (power take-off) and controls to the SUNY (State University of New York) Maritime College. In that same year, a controllable pitch propeller and shafting system was donated to the United States Merchant Marine Academy, and in 2013 an engine was donated to Camosu College in Victoria, BC, Canada. In 2014, Wärtsilä donated a Wärtsilä 20 engine to the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University (NMMU) in South Africa. This latter donation was part of the company’s long-term sponsoring partnership with the South Africa International Maritime Institute (SAIMI).

Wärtsilä in brief:

Wärtsilä is a global leader in advanced technologies and complete lifecycle solutions for the marine and energy markets. By emphasising sustainable innovation and total efficiency, Wärtsilä maximises the environmental and economic performance of the vessels and power plants of its customers.

In 2015, Wärtsilä’s net sales totalled EUR 5 billion with approximately 18, 800 employees. The company has operations in over 200 locations in more than 70 countries around the world. Wärtsilä is listed on Nasdaq Helsinki.

Texas A&M University at Galveston is a special-purpose campus of Texas A&M University offering undergraduate and graduate programs under the name and authority of Texas A&M University. With a distinct identity in marine themes, Texas A&M Galveston is intimately connected to the land grant mission of Texas A&M University and, as such, its academic programs and research initiatives are linked to finding basic and applied solutions in maritime affairs, science and technology, and ocean studies. The institution is under the management and control of the Board of Regents of The Texas A&M University System. For more information, visit www.tamug.edu.